Monitor by the Welsh Retail Consortium found a 1.7% fall in shoppers in the high street - while the out-of-town stores saw a 1.7% boost in footfall

Footfall is falling on the high street - but rising at out-of-town developments

The crisis facing the high street has deepened – with the numbers using town centre shops plunging again, according to latest figures.

The Footfall and Vacancies Monitor by the Welsh Retail Consortium (WRC) and Springboard showed footfall to the high street fell by 1.7% in July compared to last year, compared to a 1.7% rise for out-of-town shopping centres.

And overall shopping numbers declined by 1.4% in Wales over the same period, in contrast to the a fall of just 0.6% for the UK as a whole.

Despite the fall in shoppers, the number of empty shops fell from 14.6% in the previous quarter to 12.7% last month, but remains above the 10.1% figure for the UK as a whole.

The figures add to the gloom for the Welsh high street, which has long been squeezed by a growth in online shopping and has experienced several months of declining shopper numbers this year.

Footfall in July

-1.7%

+1.7%

The overall dip in the number of Welsh shoppers mirrors the 1.4% decline of June, but Scotland saw a considerable boost with a 4.4% year-on-year rise.

Welsh Retail Consortium director Sara Jones said: “It’s good news this month for Welsh shoppers as we have seen a 2% decrease in the shop vacancy rates, meaning more choice for Welsh consumers.

“This quarter we saw a reduction in empty properties to 12.7% compared to 14.6% in the previous quarter.

“Sadly these figures haven’t yet translated into increased footfall which is currently 1.4% lower than last year’s figure and, while the number of empty shops has declined, we’re still above the UK average for vacant premises.”

Diane Wehrle, retail insights director at Springboard, said: “The key driver for this less favourable performance in June is a drop in footfall in retail parks of 2.2%, although over the period from January they remain the strongest of the three trading locations.

“As it has done across the UK, the vacancy rate in Wales improved in June for the third quarter in a row. At 12.7%, Wales’ vacancy rate is still higher the 10.1% for the UK, but the drop from a high of 17.9% in April last year reflects a growing flexibility and responsiveness of landlords in the face of tough trading conditions, which has increasingly included the introduction ‘pop-up’ shops and temporary lets.

“However, the key issue for Wales’s town centres in the longer term is the extent to which any temporary let is converted into long term occupation beyond the Summer and into the key Christmas trading period.’’

Byron Davies, the Welsh Conservatives’ shadow regeneration minister, said: “Business rates reform, simplified planning, free parking, town centre managers; these are just some of the detailed proposals within a Welsh Conservative high street strategy launched two years ago.

“Since then, Labour ministers – who have the power to do something about footfall in Wales – have announced almost nothing.

“Just three months ago, 70 leading Welsh businesses and chambers of commerce jointly signed a letter to Labour’s First Minister.

“Like us, they want the Small Business Rate Relief Scheme extended to effectively abolish business rates on rateable values up to £12,000. Labour's Carwyn Jones has ignored them.”

The government aimed to tackle the decline of the high street with its Support Your High Street campaign, the focus of which is a ‘High Street Week which will run from September 20-27

Housing and Regeneration Minister Carl Sargeant said: “Town and city centres are the heart of sustainable local communities - providing places to shop, do business, socialise and live. The Support Your High Street campaign is a chance to celebrate this.

“Activities already proposed include themed markets, special offers from local traders, celebrations of local food and drink and various competitions. I’m sure this list will grow as local authorities and communities fine tune plans over the summer.”

WalesOnline is part of Media Wales, publisher of the Western Mail, South Wales Echo, Wales on Sunday and the seven Celtic weekly titles, offering you unique access to our audience across Wales online and in print.